


it's gonna take a lot to take me away from you

by ktlsyrtis



Category: Holby City
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/F, Shameless Smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-19
Updated: 2018-08-19
Packaged: 2019-06-29 11:21:17
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15728370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ktlsyrtis/pseuds/ktlsyrtis
Summary: Long distance relationships are hard, but Bernie and Serena find ways to stay connected.





	it's gonna take a lot to take me away from you

**Author's Note:**

> _Pre-Episode: s20e31 "Child in Your Shadow"_  
>  Just why was Serena so tired when she got back from visiting Bernie in Nairobi?
> 
>  
> 
> _written for Berena Appreciation Week 2018 - Day 5: Nairobi_
> 
>  
> 
> Thanks as always to Matilda for her outstanding beta skills <3

Bernie’s jaw stretches wide in a yawn as she locks the door of her small flat behind her. Long days have been the norm in the wake of the opening of the Kenyatta Trauma Centre and today is no different, sees her finally shuffling home almost twenty hours after kissing Serena goodbye that morning.

She’d planned on getting out early, taking Serena to a spectacular little restaurant she’d found to mark her last night in Nairobi. But, like so many of their plans of late, work got in the way. 

Since cancelling her trip to join Serena in the vineyards outside Capetown at the last minute, Bernie feels like she’s barely gotten to see her at all, and most of the time they’ve managed to be in the same place has been spent sleeping. Bernie adores her job, wouldn’t trade the work she’s doing for anything, and she knows with certainty that Serena doesn’t hold it against her, has seen the pride and understanding shining in Serena’s eyes. 

All that doesn’t lessen the fact that she wishes they’ve had more time.

Pausing in the doorway to her bedroom, a fond smile tugs at her lips. The dim light from the bedside lamp spills across Serena’s sleeping form, curled on her side in one of Bernie’s oversized t-shirts and a pair of knickers, the trashy romance novel she’s been reading open on the mattress beside her. Her reading glasses are still perched precariously on her nose, silver hair spiked up against the pillow.

Bernie’s heart clenches at the sight.

Stepping quietly into the room, Bernie retrieves the book, placing it on the nightstand, then slowly eases Serena’s glasses off, careful not to wake her, folding them up and putting them atop the book. She clicks off the lamp, the room bathed in silver moonlight as she strips off her clothes and ducks into the ensuite to take a quick, cool shower.

Serena still hasn’t moved when Bernie returns. Foregoing pajamas, she eases into bed behind Serena, propping her head on one hand and sliding the other around Serena’s waist. Serena murmurs a little in her sleep and Bernie smiles, leans down to nuzzle against the sensitive skin behind her ear, ruffling the short hair there.

“Bernie?” Serena’s voice is low, rough with sleep. It makes Bernie’s stomach tense, lips brushing against the shell of Serena’s ear. “What time is it?”

“It’s late, love,” she murmurs, flicking her tongue out a little and smiling at Serena’s soft gasp. “Or early, depending on how you look at it.” Her hand slips beneath the hem of the soft cotton shirt, over the smooth, warm skin of Serena’s stomach, feeling the hitch of her breath against her palm.

“Bernie, you must be exhausted. You need your sleep.” Bernie’s heart swells at the care in Serena’s voice even as the slight breathlessness heats her blood. Her kisses become more focused, seeking out the sensitive spot below Serena’s jaw as her hand slides higher, fingertips just brushing the underside of Serena’s breast.

“It’s your last night here,” she says, warm breath gusting across Serena’s skin. “Do you really think I want to sleep when there are so many other things we could be doing?” She presses closer, hooking one of her bare legs over Serena’s, brings their hips flush together.

“What would you like to do instead?” Serena says, forcing nonchalance in contrast to the way she’s unconsciously grinding back against Bernie. “Play a boardgame? Catch up on some Netflix?” She yelps as Bernie nips sharply at her earlobe, soothing the sting with a swipe of her tongue.

“I had something else in mind, but I can stop if you like…” Bernie says, slowly drawing her hand back.

“You’d better not,” Serena growls, grabbing Bernie’s hand and placing it on her breast, too impatient to continue teasing. Bernie just grins, tracing Serena’s ear with her tongue, fingers echoing the motion around the pebbled nipple pressing so insistently against her palm. 

“Anything the lady wants.”

Serena’s response is swallowed by a moan as Bernie’s fingers start to tease her in earnest, pinching and rolling her nipples with just enough pressure while she trails wet, open-mouthed kisses along Serena’s neck. She tightens her grip whens she feels Serena try to turn toward her, keeping her in place as she rucks the shirt up over Serena’s breasts. The sounds she’s making already have Bernie dizzy with desire and she knows she’ll never stop feeling so incredibly lucky to be able to do this; to bring Serena pleasure, to make her moan and pant and writhe in her arms. It’s addictive, the best possible high, and she’s not about to waste the last opportunity she’ll have for who knows how long.

Slipping her fingers beneath the elastic of Serena’s knickers, she tugs them down far enough that Serena can kick them off the rest of the way, dragging her blunt fingernails along the back of Serena’s thigh on the way back up. Bernie presses against Serena’s leg, rolling her hips forward slightly until her bent knee rests against the mattress and Bernie is plastered against her back, breath hot in her ear. 

Following the line of Serena’s thigh, the curve of her arse, Bernie’s fingers tease into coarse, dark curls from behind, Serena’s desperate groan encouraging her onward as she strokes into the growing wetness beneath. Circles widening, her slick fingers ghost against Serena’s clit, and Bernie bites back a grin at the way Serena’s hips already buck into the touch, a pained whine coming from deep in her throat.

“Patience, Serena,” Bernie whispers in her ear, smiling wide as Serena groans into the pillow. For all that she protests in the moment, Bernie knows Serena loves being teased, having her pleasure drawn out slowly and being kept on the edge for as long as she can stand. 

It’s something Bernie has gotten very, _very_ good at.

She takes her time, exploring Serena with long, leisurely caresses, occasionally skidding across her clit, teasing, barely there touches at erratic intervals, until Serena is panting and grinding down against Bernie’s hand, trying to get friction where she wants it most. 

Finally, Bernie relents. Draping herself even more tightly against Serena’s back, Bernie bites down lightly on the tense muscle along Serena’s shoulder as she slips a thumb into her, the pads of her fingertips pressing just so against her clit. 

Serena curses, loudly, clenching around the digit filling her. Not for the first time this week, Bernie’s glad that her apartment building is new construction with thick concrete walls.

Slowly Bernie builds a rhythm, circling with her fingertips while just barely stroking the textured patch beneath her thumb, gradually increasing pressure as Serena’s voice goes breathy and desperate. Takes her right to the edge and then backs off, smirking as Serena pleads for more. 

Bernie may have never really considered herself dominant in the bedroom, but _god_ does she love hearing Serena beg.

Taking pity on her, Bernie begins again with gentle movements that quickly become more urgent and focused, Serena’s hands fisted white knuckle tight in the sheets. Bending her head, Bernie peppers kisses against the pale silver scars smattered across Serena’s shoulders, intersperses them with small, sharp bites, just to make Serena gasp and shudder. 

She mouths her way up along the soft skin of Serena’s neck, takes her earlobe between her lips and bites gently. Leans forward to whisper hotly in her ear, “I want you to think about this when you get back.” She feels Serena shiver at the sensation as much as the words. “When you’re alone at night, think about me touching you. Being inside you.” Serena gasps, and Bernie smirks. “How good I make you feel. Don’t I, Serena?”

“Y-yes,” Serena pants brokenly. “ _So_ good. God, Bernie. _Please_.”

Curling her fingers that much harder, Bernie growls at the naked need in Serena’s voice, suddenly overwhelmed with the desire to see Serena fall apart. “Come for me, love. Come for me _now_.”

Bernie pulls back just enough to see Serena’s face pressed against the pillow, eyes squeezed shut in a a grimace of pleasure. Keeps watching as she tips over the edge, turning her head just enough to muffle her cries. 

A gush of wetness coats Bernie’s palm and she works Serena through it, keeps up the unrelenting pace until Serena cries out again, silky walls pulsing and gripping around her fingers. Serena whimpers into the pillow, trembling, stuttering out Bernie’s name in broken syllables.

Only then does Bernie slow, gradually withdrawing her hand to rest against Serena’s inner thigh as she trembles and gasps for breath.

Easing off Serena’s back, Bernie gathers her close, one arm tucked beneath Serena’s head, the other around her waist, her hand still a little wet and sticky where it rests on the swell of Serena’s abdomen. 

She nuzzles into Serena’s tousled hair and breathes her in, the heat of her body amplifying the scent of her shampoo, her skin. Smiles at just how much it feels like home.

Serena twists in her arms, a blissful little smile on her face as she tugs Bernie down into a leisurely kiss. It’s slow and wet and perfect, and Bernie grinds against the thick muscle of Serena’s thigh mindlessly. Watching Serena come is always a little overwhelming and Bernie’s body is thrumming with arousal, hips moving more easily as wetness coats Serena’s skin.

Bernie’s disappointed whimper at being dislodged turns into an almost pained moan as Serena settles fully on her back, her hands gripping Bernie’s hips and urging her upward, the grin on her face nothing less than lascivious.

Heart pounding, Bernie settles her knees above Serena’s shoulders, a tremor shuddering through her at the gust of Serena’s breath against her core. She hadn’t bothered to get a headboard when she moved in, couldn’t really see the point knowing how little time she’d be spending in her flat, so she braces her hands against the cool plaster of the wall, hissing out a curse as Serena’s tongue strokes her slowly from entrance to clit.

As much as she might wish otherwise, Bernie knows she won’t last long, already wound up and teetering on the edge. Serena must sense it as well, her tongue stroking slow and delicate, avoiding Bernie’s clit, the spots that will finish her immediately. 

Serena has told Bernie repeatedly how much she loves doing this, spent more than one of their phone calls describing how she wants to make Bernie come with her mouth while she looks up at her again and again. Admitted how incredibly wet the thought makes her in a breathy whisper that had Bernie shoving a hand beneath her knickers.

Serena’s grip on her tightens, shifting her slightly, and Bernie’s head falls back as Serena circles her entrance, teasing her tongue inside and stroking. Sparks of sensation shoot through Bernie’s body, coiling her tighter and tighter, her fingertips as white as the wall they’re pressed again, desperate for something to ground her, to cling to as she holds herself back.

The touch disappears as Serena tilts her head back a bit, and it takes all of Bernie’s strength to not chase the sensation, to hold her hips steady, fighting her body’s desperate reactions.

“Bernie,” Serena says softly and Bernie squeezes her eyes shut, knows if she looks down, sees Serena between her thighs she won’t be able to hold back. “Bernie, look at me.” There’s a snap of command in her voice that makes Bernie’s mind go a little fuzzy.

In the end, she’s never been able to deny Serena much of anything and this is no different. Serena’s eyes are practically black with desire, her heated gaze piercing Bernie to her very core. Their gazes locked, Serena takes Bernie’s clit between her lips, sucking firmly, and that’s all it takes. 

Bernie keens and shudders, curling forward on herself until her forehead is pressed against the wall between her hands, hips jumping with each fluttering stroke of Serena’s tongue.

She’s able to retain enough awareness to swing one trembling leg back over, sliding bonelessly down to lie beside a terribly smug Serena, a delighted smile on her face as she swipes a hand over her chin and presses herself to Bernie’s side, their legs tangling and an arm draped across her waist.

“I’m going to miss that,” Serena murmurs, lips just brushing Bernie’s collarbone, and Bernie huffs out a chuckle, breathing still fast and erratic.

“Me too,” she says fervently, feels Serena shake with laughter against her. 

Bernie pulls her a little closer as her breathing slows, filled with gratitude that they’re even here like this. After everything they’ve been through, those terrible moments when she thought she’d lost Serena forever, any chance to hold Serena feels precious. She knows these are the memories that will help make the heartache of their impending separation bearable.

The caress of Serena’s lips becomes more purposeful against Bernie’s clavicle, the sharp edge of teeth scraping along the ridge until Bernie groans, tangling her hands in Serena’s hair.

“Serena,” she whines, the flick of Serena’s tongue against the hollow of her throat making her squirm. “We have to be up for your flight in a few hours. You should get some sleep.”

Bernie’s breath catches as Serena slides a leg across her, straddling her hips with a wicked smile, just lightly brushing their mouths together. 

“I’ll sleep when I’m dead, Berenice.” The low husk of her voice has Bernie squeezing her thighs together, even as the remnants of her orgasm linger in her languid muscles. “Unless you’d rather sleep?”

“Not on your life,” Bernie growls, capturing Serena’s mouth in a kiss.


End file.
